The Man Who Saved The World
by Innana
Summary: Harry is grieving after the final battle. Perhaps this enigmatic stranger can offer him comfort and help him find peace, but all is not what it seems.
1. Chapter 1

**The Man Who Saved The World**

 **Who is this enigmatic stranger and how can he help Harry deal with the feelings of guilt and sadness about a certain professor. Plot twist at the end.**

 _There will be no visit from the Snarry, Drarry or the other 7 Dwarves of SLASH. Happy, Dopey, Bashful and Grumpy might put in an appearance (Luna, Dudley, Neville, Severus) Sleepy is writing this story_

 _This is my first story for this fandom and I do not have a beta so all mistakes are mine alone. If anyone would like the job, please Pm me._

 _It goes without saying, of course, all the characters belong to the talented J.K. Rowling. Alexander is mine…kind of._

 _I made no money from this fiction, probably just a loss in electricity and time…_

 _ **Dedicated to the memory of Alan Rickman and a bloke called David Jones**_

 **It ain't easy**

It was almost midnight when the hooded figure appeared out of thin air in the street in Godric's Hollow, and began walking towards the church. Harry Potter glanced around and satisfied no-one was going to attempt to mob the 'chosen one', peeled down his hood and approached the entrance to the church yard. His footsteps were slow and laboured. Beneath his round glasses, his green eyes lacked their usual vitality. The dark shadows underneath them, along with the pasty complexion, were a stark reminder of the anguish and horror of recent events. He had visited so many gravesides in the weeks following the battle, attended so many funerals, that the sight was becoming so familiar to him; Fred, Remus, Tonks, Lavender, Collin. Today's visit however, was different…

During the first few days after the Battle of Hogwarts, numb with shock; Harry had existed on auto pilot – drifting along, somewhere in the twilight world between waking and sleep. Much of the time, he had felt like a disembodied spirit; detached from reality, whilst the world span around him. The sun had set then risen again, as night followed day, became night again and somehow…life went on. He and his friends had stayed behind to help with the clean-up. He had so much admiration for how Ron and Ginny, in spite of their own grief at losing their brother Fred, had still insisted on remaining at Hogwarts to give what assistance and support that they could. The two youngest Weasleys had returned to comfort their grieving family the following day. Hermione had done her best to keep everyone grounded, helping the teachers to sort sleeping arrangements for the students who had been displaced, into temporary beds in other houses. She had been his anchor, as well as coping with Ron's grief at losing his brother.

Harry was distracted momentarily by the glistening threads of a spider's web, shimmering in the moonlight on a corner of the gate. He glanced up to the heavens. The full moon shone huge and bright against the backdrop of winking stars. A sigh escaped his lips and he felt a stab of anguish as a familiar face swam into view in his mind's eye; Remus Lupin, his former Defence against the Dark Arts professor, friend and mentor. The werewolf and his wife; Nymphadora Tonks, had lost their lives in the battle. His thoughts drifted to another little boy who, just like himself, would grow up without ever knowing his parents. At least his godson Teddy would have a stable home life, surrounded by family who love him. That thought offered him a little comfort.

He stepped into the church yard and his emerald green eyes darted around. Even though most of the death eaters had either been captured, gone into hiding or even fled the county, there was still a slim chance that one of them, hell bent on revenge, would try to go after him and finish what Voldemort had been unable to do.

Satisfied that he was in no apparent danger, he cast a lumos charm to light the end of his wand and began to walk away from the church toward the graves. His trainers squelched as they made contact with the grass – still damp from the evening dew. The scent of cherry blossom permeated his nostrils. Even though it had been a warm day, the temperature had dropped significantly after sunset, causing him to shiver slightly. The bouquet he clutched, rustled against his elbow, as he meandered between the grey and black graves towards the white marble stone that marked the final resting place of Lily and James Potter. The first time Harry had visited his parents' grave several months ago, he had been upset as he thought of their rotting remains lying under the soil, this time he felt more peaceful. He knew that although their bodies may have been buried in this place, their spirits lived on and were constantly by his side.

Harry had no idea how long he had been standing at the grave after setting the bouquet in front of it. His fingers traced the edges of the marble stone, the image of his parents etched in his mind just as he had seen them last; as he had held the resurrection stone and turned it over in his hand. They had appeared to him, along with Remus and Sirius, to support him in those final, terrifying moments as he had gone to meet Voldemort, with the knowledge that he, Harry, had to die because it was the only way to defeat the dark wizard. The guilt of his own survival whilst so many others had perished, weighed him down like a sack full of rocks. His gaze drifted wistfully to another grave close by; freshly dug, the mound of earth had not yet settled. The grave marker was a black granite stone on which were etched the words:

Severus Tobias Snape

Born 9 January 1960

Died 2 May 1998

The bravest man, sleep in peace Half-Blood Prince

It had been his insistence that his former professor was buried alongside his only friend, even though he had no known connection to Godric's Hollow. It hadn't felt right to leave him at Spinner's End all alone. There had been some resistance to the idea, but being the boy who saved the wizarding world had its advantages.

He thought back to the moment he, Ron and Hermione had shuffled back into the entrance hall. He had destroyed the elder wand, it was now just more flotsam and jetsam floating in the Black Lake. The sun's rays had bathed the room in a soft amber light as it streamed through the tall windows. Dust motes sparkled and danced, shimmering in the golden light as Filch the caretaker swept piles of rubble, muttering under his breath all the while, watched by the ruby red eyes Mrs Norris the cat. The survivors had gathered on the steps of what remained of their beloved school, eyes glassy with shock and horror at the carnage and destruction they had witnessed. Harry had longed for nothing more than to take a vial of dreamless sleep and lay his head down on a pillow, but there something he had to take care of before anything else. He stood in front of the assembled crowd and began to speak.

Harry remembered how the expressions of the students and staff had changed from anger at the very mention of Snape; to shock and bewilderment as he informed them of the late professor's true loyalties. He explained how the dour man had continually placed his life in danger to operate as a spy for Dumbledore and had protected Harry, time and again. Facts that he had learned from the dead man's memories afforded to him in the pensieve. Memories that a dying Snape had given him in the tears that had rolled down his ashen face, as Harry with hands stained crimson from the older wizard's blood, had tried in vain to stem the bleeding from the fatal wounds inflicted by Voldemort's python/viper hybrid snake, Nagini.

"Look at me." It was the first time the man had ever spoken to him in such a gentle tone. Snape's black onyx eyes had gazed into his own green ones for a brief moment. "You have your mother's eyes." Then the man who had tormented him throughout his entire time at Hogwarts took a final breath and had said no more. Harry liked to think that he had brought him some peace, in his final moments. A tear escaped his eye, rolled down his cheek and he sniffed, stifling a sob.

"'I'm sorry we couldn't save you Professor."

He wiped his face, gazing at the black stone when a voice brought him out of his reverie. "Well I never thought, I would see anyone shed a tear for old Severus Snape."

 **The title of this story is taken from the Bowie song, The Man Who Sold the World. The chapter title is a song from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust**

 **I would really appreciate reviews as this is my first story for this fandom :-D**


	2. Chapter 2

**Quicksand**

Harry snapped his head to the right and saw a man he didn't recognise, standing a few feet away, regarding him curiously. Never taking his eyes off the stranger, his held his wand aloft – he hadn't heard anyone approach. He stared at the man suspiciously. Harry could make out the outline of light coloured, collar length hair and a long muggle type trench-coat in the soft glow of the moonlight. "How did you…?" Harry furrowed his brows and peered at the man for a moment. Neither of them made any attempt to move. "Who are you?"

The grave was under a disillusionment charm and only visible to a select few people including himself. Although Harry had revealed the truth about his former professor's intentions, the general opinion outside the school and in the Ministry of Magic, was still divided. The name of Severus Snape was stilled vilified on the lips of a lot of people. Rita Skeeter and the Daily prophet had done very little to help these matters. Only days after the man's death, the odious reporter had produced a scathing article, highlighting both Snape's teaching methods and death eater activities.

"Alexander Saven, Severus was my distant cousin – on his mother's side, he hastily added. The man spoke in clipped, honeyed tones. "He didn't have many friends so I was surprised to find anyone else here. I take it Severus was your teacher at Hogwarts then?"

Harry nodded and gulped, trying to will away the snitch sized lump in his throat. "He was my potions professor, then in my last year, he taught Defence against the Dark Arts."

"Oh! Well, he was certainly interested in that subject. I think he knew the material in the 3rd year textbooks before he even set foot in Hogwarts," Alexander murmured. "I heard he became headmaster before his death."

"Yes," Harry replied. His gaze drifted to the gravestone. "But I wasn't in school during that time." Harry, Ron and Hermione had dropped out of school for that final year, hunting the horcruxes and trying to stay out of the grasp of snatchers and death-eaters. He looked back at Alexander. "Did you go to Hogwarts then?"

The man took a few steps closer. "Yes, I was at school with Severus and …" He made a sweeping gesture, indicating the grave of Lily and James Potter.

Harry's green eyes settled back on the older man. Now that he was standing closer, Alexander was revealed as a handsome man with high cheekbones and sandy brown hair. He was dressed in muggle clothing and had little resemblance to his dark, dungeon bat of a cousin – apart from his alabaster complexion. "So you knew my parents as well then?"

"Oh so you are Lily Evans' son?"

Harry blinked in surprise and sighed with relief at not being addressed as 'Harry Potter', 'saviour of the Wizarding World', 'The Chosen One' or various other appellations that he had become accustomed to. It made for a welcome change and he smiled and held out his hand. "Yes. I'm Harry."

The man shook the proffered hand. He shuffled his feet for a moment. "Of course – Harry Potter, forgive me Harry, I have spent much of my time in the muggle world since the first wizarding wars. That's why I didn't recognise you at first."

"No! It's a relief actually! " Harry couldn't go anywhere without being hounded by autograph hunters or press, clamouring for an exclusive story about the Chosen One. He practically needed a body guard to walk down Diagon Alley without being mobbed. "Did you – did you know them well?"

Alexander sighed before he spoke. "Not that well. I was in Ravenclaw." He nodded towards the Potter grave. "Your mother, Lily was friendly toward the other houses and got on with everyone but James – your father – he had a tight knit bunch of friends from Gryffindor, called themselves the Marauders. They were always getting into trouble, breaking rules, playing pranks on everyone."

Harry nodded in acknowledgement. "Yes I heard they played a lot of pranks on Professor Snape?"

Alexander was silent for a moment then said, "You still call him that even though you aren't in school anymore?"

"Yes, I – I hardly called him that when I was in school though."

"I can only imagine what names the children came up with for him." Alexander mumbled. "He wasn't the friendliest chap in the world. He was very good friends with your mother though, you know – then something happened in the sixth year and they fell out.

"I know," Harry breathed.

"He became quite withdrawn, hardly spoke to anyone, just sat scribbling away in his text books – probably writing a thousand and one ways to hex your father and his friends for the – _tricks_ they played on him."

Harry knew, exactly what had been written all those years ago in the Potions textbook, he had discovered it in Slughorn's potions cupboard, marked: _Property of the Half Blood Prince_ and he had utilised the handy hints and notes that had been scribbled in the margins and alongside the text, to excel in potions. Hermione had become slightly jealous of his success. He hadn't realised at the time, that the person whose writings he so admired, was none other than his most hated professor.

"I wouldn't blame him if he had," he replied. "They were awful to him in school from what I heard. I mean, I love my dad and he was a great wizard, but he was a total prick to Professor Snape and perhaps if he hadn't been, then things would have turned out different. Snape wouldn't have become a death eater and…" He had become quite agitated, his breathing seemed to have accelerated to a hundred miles an hour.

Alexander stood with his arms folded. "Really? Even though this was your father we are talking about."

"Still wasn't right, I can't stand bullies. It's their fault he…"

"Easy, Harry," Alexander patted him lightly on his arm. "I don't think you understand the influence that Lucius Malfoy had on him when he came to Hogwarts, he was the Slytherin prefect, he knew how to manipulate people and was well under you-know-who's influence. He had just about everyone in that house signed up to follow him when they left school. Severus was easy prey after he fell out with your mother yes, but in the end he made his own choices." There was a slight tremble in the man's hand."

"I – guess it must have been frustrating to watch him getting involved in all that," he said.

Alexander removed his hand and placed them in his pockets. "A little. We – got on OK in the first few years but didn't hang around together, as I said, he was always with your mother – besides which he was a Slytherin and the others in his house didn't really encourage communication with others outside their own house."

"And it's sometimes like that now. All this inter house rivalry, it's stupid and pointless!" Harry snapped. "I mean, a little friendly competition for quiditch and the house cup is one thing, but not at the level it was at Hogwarts – I mean, and I'm ashamed to admit this, but another student and I almost hexed each other into oblivion. It has to stop. We hated each other right through school and fought because we were in different houses!" He quashed his anger, forcing himself to take deep breaths. "And in the end, what was it all for? Power? Pureblood supremacy? It's just like what happened during the 2nd World War with Hitler. So many people died at the battle of Hogwarts – on both sides. So many pointless deaths – like Professor Snape."

"There will _always_ be causalities in a war, Harry and those who take part are aware of the risk it poses. It is a shame that it has to be so." Alexander spoke each word slowly. "I'm sure he would be comforted to know that someone _cared_ for him enough to do this." He removed his right hand from his pocket and gestured towards the black gravestone.

"I didn't while we were at school," Harry began, "but then I didn't learn until recently that he was really on Dumbledore's side the whole time, and that he was protecting me." Alexander remained silent, letting Harry do all the speaking. "And I didn't exactly make it easy for him. I took on a fully grown mountain troll in the first year. A jinx on my broom almost killed me. In my 3rd year, I confronted a man I thought to have been a mass murderer. I took so many chances, I wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for Professor Snape and I didn't give him a chance," he whispered as he felt the threat of tears again.

"A mountain troll – Merlin's beard!" Alexander exclaimed. "Well at least you survived to tell the tale of it. I don't suppose my cousin was too impressed with your exploits. He never had much patience with children to begin with."

"Well, luckily for us, he wasn't my head of house or I think I would have been expelled in the 2nd year!"

Alexander pursed his lips. "So Severus was a strict disciplinarian then I take it?"

"Yeah, sometimes too much. In fact he was a bloody bastard at times, and I hated him for always taking points from Gryffindor or making me clean cauldrons in detention." Harry winced. Had he been too disrespectful? The man was Alexander's cousin after all. "But," he continued, "all the same, I should have treated him with more respect. Everything he did – especially in this last year, he must have felt so isolated and alone. After Dumbledore's death…" Harry gazed at his shoes, feeling suddenly overwhelmed with sadness. "He would have had no-one to speak to and I know what that is like." The last few words, he spoke in a whisper. He had spent ten years of his life feeling like the loneliest boy in the world, locked in a cupboard under the stairs, and constantly reminded that he was a freak and worthless. He clamped down on his volatile emotions. "He must have felt like – like he was sinking in quicksand with no-one to rescue him."

The older man sighed. An awkward silence followed then he spoke softly. "There is no point in dwelling on these things Harry, I'm sure that if Severus made this sacrifice, as you say he did, then he would want you to get on with your own life and have one that is a damned sight more happy than his was."

For a while, both men stood in companiable silence then a question formed on Harry's lips. "So how did you know where he was buried?"

I went to see Minerva McGonagal. It's been years since I last saw Severus and I suppose you always think there will be another time in the future don't you." Harry nodded sadly.

"I always hoped that the Severus I knew from school wasn't lost forever," Alexander continued, "he was different from the other Slytherins at first and he was hanging around with a muggle born – your mother. But the others in his dorm started having more of an influence on him and soon, he was on a downward spiral into the darkness. When I heard about his part in bringing down you-know-who, I felt I had to come and pay my respects."

"But why did my father have to pick on him so much?" Harry had never been satisfied with the answer that his godfather had given him that they were just kids larking about – not after seeing the memories. He still couldn't shake the feeling that his father, Sirius and to a lesser extent, Lupin had been partly responsible for Snape becoming a death eater.

"I don't know really, James was jealous of their friendship I guess, as it was no secret that he fancied your mother from the moment he saw her on the train in the first year. Severus was an oddball, long hair, clothes that didn't fit and his preference for muggle music."

"He liked muggle music? Really?"

"Yes, he particularly liked David Bowie as I recall. A few people thought he was a wizard but he was just an incredibly talented muggle. He probably should have been though."

"I've heard of him, I spent every summer in the muggle world," Harry replied. "Blimey, I always thought he would be into classical stuff like Mozart."

Alexander chuckled. "Well he may have done later, but certainly when I knew him he was into Bowie, T-Rex and later some really dark and moody bands like Joy Division and Bauhaus."

Harry blinked, his eyes widened. "What so he was a goth?"

"Well I don't know that he would take too kindly to that label. He was just…Severus." Alexander stated.

Harry stared wistfully at the mound of earth in front of him. "I wish I could have known the real Severus Snape. I only found out how much he had done for me after he died"

There was a long silence which was eventually broken by Alexander – who appeared to choose his words carefully. "There wasn't really that much else to know. He kept himself to himself, learned at an early age to hide his emotions. He – was never the easiest person to get close to. I think he preferred it that way."

"But no-one can be happy living like that!" Said Harry.

"Harry I don't think Severus had been happy for a long time. He probably didn't feel that he deserved to be. I imagine that he was relieved when he realised that he was going to die."

"Maybe, but…" Harry murmured, he screwed his eyes shut trying to will away the image of the dying man that swam into his vision. "I still wish I had made more of an effort to like the man."

"That's admirable of you but I think the best of Severus Snape died on the day he fell out with your mother."

Harry just gazed at the ground for a few moments. "I refuse to believe that. I think the best of him was only revealed to Dumbledore and hidden from the rest of the world. I hope he's at peace now," he whispered.

A sudden gust of wind appeared. Alexander plucked at a lock of hair that had whipped about his face. "I think it may be time to leave them in peace now." Harry nodded and both men turned towards the exit.

"What do you do – In the muggle world I mean? I never thought of having a career outside of the wizarding world." Harry asked his companion as they walked back towards the church.

Alexander grinned, the corners of his mouth turning up as he did so. "I'm an alchemist. Since the interest in what they refer to as New Age Science – aromatherapy, Reiki healing, Wicca; you can just about get away with performing spells there and the muggles are none the wiser."

"Oh, but I thought the Statute of Secrecy meant that you could not perform magic in front of muggles."

"Well…yes, in theory, but for stuff like healing, they turn a blind eye. If you were to ride a broom or apparate in front of a muggle then that would be a violation. I believe there was a sighting of a flying car a few years back – caused quite an amount of consternation as I recall."

"Oh yeah…I remember that," Harry smirked. He and Ron had flown the charmed Ford Anglia to school in the 2nd year after they missed the Hogwarts Express. Snape had been livid and told the two Gryffindors that they would have been expelled, had they been in Slytherin House, luckily their own head of House, Professor McGonagal had been more lenient.

Once back on the street, Alexander said goodbye, then dissaparated, and Harry found himself alone in the street. Feeling the chill of the wind, he placed his hands in his pockets and his fingers brushed against a silky material. The Invisibility cloak! But he couldn't even remember bringing it. He shrugged, obviously the stress of the last few weeks was catching up with him.

 **Ok, so I have no idea what music Severus was into but he certainly dressed like a lot of gothic men I have known – apart from the robes of course. He was brought up in the muggle world and so probably would have heard the music around at the time like Bowie, T-Rex etc.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Scary Monsters, Super Creeps**

One year later.

In a flash of green flames Harry appeared at the Burrow. He stepped out of the floo, onto the hearth and was engulfed by a cloud of red hair, scented of coffee and vanilla. He squeezed his girlfriend Ginny tightly for a moment then loosened his grip and gave an embarrassed grin at the rest of the household.

He immediately found himself the recipient of another embrace, this time from Hermione, followed by his surrogate mother, Molly Weasley, who gave him a quick hug then stepped back, proceeding to pat his shoulders as she gave him a watery smile. He knew today was going to be an emotional one for the whole Weasley clan. It was only eight am and the remembrance service wasn't until ten but he had agreed to meet the others at the Burrow first so they could travel together by portkey.

Ron clapped him on the back, "Alright mate," he mumbled. His eyes lacked their usual sparkle. Hermione had once described the red-head as having 'the emotional range of a teaspoon', but today, as he looked into his friend's eyes, Harry saw the pain reflected in their depths. One year ago, they had lost Fred and the Weasley house had changed forever.

"Yeah, you?"

"Yeah, can't believe it's been a year already." Hermione sidled up to Ron and rubbed his arm, laying her head on his shoulder. Harry greeted Mr Weasley, Bill and George, who waved to him from his seated position at the table. He could not fathom how this day would be for George. The Weasley twins had been inseparable – always inventing new pranks and ways to make mischief, which had led to their successful enterprise

Following the 2nd Wizarding War, the MOM had appointed Kingsley Shacklebolt as Minister. His first task in office had been to reshuffle the cabinet and his 2nd had been to offer Auror Training to Harry and his friends. Ron and himself and joined as junior aurors in the Department of Mysteries. The fact that neither student had stayed in school to take their NEWTS was overlooked, given their role in bringing about the end to Voldemort's reign of terror. Hermione had accepted a more political role, in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Only Neville, Ginny and Luna had returned to school to resume their education. The Malfoys narrowly escaped jail, thanks to Harry's testimony that the pureblood family had switched their allegiance towards the end of the battle. After the series of trials, Narcissa had embraced a shocked Harry and thanked him for giving her family back to her. Harry and Draco had come to an unspoken truce. Harry had returned to his old school at weekends to help with the rebuilding, whilst Ron helped George to run the joke shop. The two Weasley brothers had become much closer since Fred's death. Young Dennis Creavey had also taken a holiday job at the store during the school holidays.

Molly placed her hands on Harry's shoulders from behind. "Sit down Harry, we are still waiting for Fleur to get the baby ready, would you like some tea? Have you had breakfast?"

"Er…" He obeyed, taking a seat opposite George.

She waved her wand and within a few seconds, a plate of toast, eggs and bacon had appeared on the table. Harry had only had cereal and it did smell good so he tucked in gratefully.

A short while later, the entire household had each placed their hand on an old, cracked leather Doctor Martin boot and Harry felt the familiar tug to his navel before being yanked, spinning through the air until he and the rest of their entourage, touched down lightly just outside the Hogwarts School boundaries. A watery sun was trying to fight its way through hazy clouds, tinging the light grey sky with a halo of pale yellow as they made their way, along with dozens of others up to the castle.

As they arrived at the school entrance hall, they met up with Neville, who was accompanied by his feisty grandmother; Augusta Longbottom and his starry eyed girlfriend; Luna Lovegood. They all made their way with hundreds of other parents and children towards the Great Hall. They were greeted by headmistress McGonagal who waited until the last person was seated before walking up the centre aisle to the front where the staff table had been transfigured into a stage. Two huge golden sheets of parchment bearing the names of all the fallen heroes from the battle were suspended in the air on both sides of the stage.

A hush descended as Minerva took her place at the front of the stage for the opening speech, commanding the attention of everyone in the hall.

" _One year ago this school was a much different place than it is today,"_ she began, her soft Scottish lilt drifting down through the hall _. "As I look around, there are many absent faces – faces of students, staff and parents who should be with us today had events been different. Whilst we are grateful that so many of us survived, we shall never forget the sacrifice of those who gave their lives whilst protecting this school on that terrible day. It is thanks to those selfless individuals as well of those of you in this hall, that so many of you are able to be present today and that we can at last live in a new era of peace, free from the constant threat of evil that we endured in those dark days before the war."_

" _Of course, we all owe a great debt to all of you, but there are several people for whom I would like to give a special mention."_

" _To Professor Dumbledore who loved this school and thought of each and every one of his students as his own children. His presence will be greatly missed for many long years to come. If I have only half of the respect and influence of that man, I shall be very happy. I have a momentous task to follow in his footsteps as headteacher of Hogwarts."_

" _To Professor Snape whose unwavering courage and bravery didn't even come to light until after his death."_ Her voice faltered slightly. _"His final year at Hogwarts must have been horrific – despised by most of the staff and students, considered by many to be a traitor and if it wasn't for the memories he gave to Harry Potter as he was dying, none of us would ever have known."_

She paused, taking the moment to gather her composure, before continuing. _"To Remus Lupin, our former Defence against the Dark Arts Professor who fought so valiantly at the side of many others and perished, along with his wife and mother of his baby son. And of course not forgetting the valiant deeds of our own Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom who I am happy to have here with us in the audience. I am so proud to say that they were students in my own House of Gryffindor_." Harry gave an embarrassed grin and tried not to notice if anyone glanced at him, whilst Ron tapped him on the thigh with the back of his hand.

The Headmistress carried on, naming other heroes, some alive and other deceased, who had all played their integral part in the war. She gave thanks for the many benefactors who had pledged both money and time to assist with the rebuilding of the school and helping the families of all those effected. Harry scarcely heard the words that were spoken over the roaring in his ears. After she had finished speaking, she handed over the stage to others who had prepared their own tributes.

Suddenly Harry heard his voice mentioned and realised that he was being ushered to the front.

"Go on mate, you'll be brilliant," Ron clapped him on the shoulder as Ginny squeezed his hand. Hermione, Molly and George all whispered words of encouragement as he rose from his seat.

Harry felt as though a baby hippogriff was flying round in circles and doing loop-de-loop in his stomach as he approached the steps that lead up to the stage. Every footstep that he took seemed amplified, echoed on the dark mahogany wood as he walked across to the middle of the platform. He cleared his throat, nervous about the thought of every eye in the room was now locked on him. He tried to remember all that he had learned in auror training about remaining calm and composed.

" _I'm not used to public speaking so I hope you'll forgive me if I…"_ his green eyes swept from one side of the hall to another, looking to his friends for reassurance. His gaze drifted to the back of the room where a young man with light blond hair sat with his mother, looking decidedly out of place - Draco and Narcissa Malfoy. He noticed the absence of Lucius.

His lowered his gaze back to the front and taking a deep breath, resumed his speech. _"Everyone refers to me as some kind of hero – the saviour of the wizarding world, but I'm not special. I just did what I needed to do – and I was terrified. When I – I faced…"_ he paused, he was so used to everyone wincing whenever he had previously mentioned the dark wizard's name. _"You-know-who, I thought I was going to my death. I was more scared in that moment than I had ever been in my entire life, but I saw my parents, Remus Lupin and my godfather Sirius Black, and they gave me courage and strength. They were with me then, and I know that they are with me now – my mum told me, they are with me always. And everyone else who you all loved, that love doesn't die, it stays with you, in here."_ He placed his hand over his heart. " _They will be with us now, in this room, watching over us even now, Fred Weasley is probably making wisecracks about all the long faces"_ The tinkle of light-hearted laughter drifted up from the audience. Harry was glad to have relieved some of the tension in the room. _"Professor Snape will be watching all the first years and cursing them for adding the wrong ingredients to their potions."_ Again he heard laughter.

 _All of us suffered greatly in the war a year ago. It doesn't matter whether you were in Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Huffepuff or Slytherin. We all lost people. My hope for the future of Hogwarts is that, if we have learned anything from the mistakes of the past, it is that we should all try to get on with each other, no matter which house we were sorted in, whether you are pure blood, half blood or muggle born. After all, if anyone cuts us, do we not all bleed the same?"_ He paused and a murmur went round the audience. _"We are told after we are sorted, that your house is like your family but we should remember that we are also all part of the bigger family that is Hogwarts."_

He swallowed, trying to quell his rising nerves – then clasped his hands together and resumed his speech. _"Once, there was a young boy whose mother was a witch and his father, a muggle. He referred to himself the Half Blood Prince. He always felt like he was alone, growing up in the muggle world but being able to do magic. One day he saw this girl in the park and he realised that she was just like him. The girl was teased by her sister and called a freak. The boy approached her and they became friends – best friends and spent a happy summer together. She was muggle born, but he didn't care about this. They vowed to be friends always but then they came to Hogwarts and the girl was sorted into Gryffindor, whilst he was placed in Slytherin_." He paused for a moment, then unclasped his hands and let his arms fall to his side. _"Although they maintained their friendship for the first few years, others didn't like it. The Gryffindor boys picked on the Prince and his own Slytherins mocked him for being friends with not just a Gryffindor, but also a muggle born witch. He didn't care about her blood status because she was his best friend and he loved her. One day, the Gryffindor boys played a cruel trick on him. The girl tried to help him, but feeling humiliated, and pressurised by the other Slytherins, he told her that he didn't need help from a filthy 'mudblood'. He didn't mean it, but it was too late. She never forgave him and ended up dating one of the Gryffindor boys. The Half Blood Prince, now totally alone, ended up getting more involved with death eaters and joined Voldemort."_ There was a gasp from the audience. _"It's ok, you shouldn't be afraid to say his name now – I know he's gone because,"_ he raised his right hand to his forehead, _"my scar doesn't hurt anymore._

" _Anyway,"_ Harry continued. _"A few years later, there was a terrible prophecy that fortold of a child who could stop Voldemort and realising that this involved his best friend from school and that her family were in danger, the Half Blood prince begged Professor Dumbledore to keep them safe, and in return he promised to spy against Voldemort. Dumbledore hid the family, but they were betrayed by someone they thought of as a friend. Her life was snuffed out in an instance, along with her husband; the Gryffindor boy she had dated in school, but her child survived. Filled with remorse, the Half Blood Prince, vowed to protect the woman's son, and avenge her death. He put himself in danger, spying on his former master, playing a double agent, keeping the boy safe and tragically, sacrificed his own life so that the Dark Lord could be defeated. I know, because I am the child who survived. The Half Blood Prince, was Professor Snape and the girl was my mother, Lily."_ He paused, no one in the audience moved. Harry felt as though someone had cast a massive petrificus totalis spell over everyone in the hall.

Harry inhaled deeply then expelled the air from his lungs slowly on the outbreath. He glanced out at the audience, deeply gratified to find that he still had their full attention _. "We have all been guilty of demonising the Slytherins. But at the end of the day, it was a Slytherin, who saved my life time and time again and helped bring about the end of you-know-who and the person who betrayed my parents – Peter Petigrew, I'm ashamed to admit; was a Gryffindor! Also, I was almost sorted into Slytherin myself on the first day, but I had heard that only dark wizards were in Slytherin so I asked for another house. Just imagine that – the 'Chosen One' in Slytherin House instead of Gryffindor!" He deliberately placed emphasis on the word 'Chosen'. "Would things have been any different I wonder? Would I have been any different had I been a Slytherin? I would like to think not!"_

He paused for a long moment, giving the audience time to consider his last statement, before continuing. _"In the end, it wasn't me who defeated Voldemort, it was love – love of a woman for her child, so strong that the killing curse rebounded."_ He swallowed, trying to will away the snitch sized lump in his throat. _"It was the love of a man for his childhood friend, who put himself in mortal danger every day to protect her son and provide vital information about Voldemort's plan. It was the love of another woman for her child. A woman who, when asked to check if I was really dead, lied to Voldemort to protect her son. If she had been discovered, she and her whole family would have no doubt suffered horrible consequences."_ He glanced to the back of the hall, where Narcissa Malfoy sat wide eyed in astonishment. _"And finally, the Love of a great headmaster; Professor Dumbledore, for all his students as I know he thought of like his family. So as we remember and celebrate the lives of all those who should be sitting in the seats besides us,"_ he made a sweeping gesture across the audience. _"We should remember that it was the greatest magic of all that defeated darkness – love and a bit of help from Neville Longbottom with the sword of Gryffindor!"_ Neville's face turned as red as the Gryffindor banner as everyone turned to look at him.

Harry turned to step down from the stage as the audience burst into a roaring applause. He noticed that many of the people around him were dabbing their eyes with handkerchiefs and he coloured slightly.


	4. Chapter 4

**Heroes**

"That was bloody brilliant," said Ron, as Harry slipped into his seat, his cheeks still flaming slightly. Molly didn't chide her son for using bad language. She was one of the people with a hanky. Ginny flashed him a dazzling smile and slipped her hand into his. "Well done," she whispered.

"That was lovely," Hermione murmured.

Neville, his skin still a little flushed, next made his way to the front. It was his turn to speak.

" _Er… if you would have told me on the first day that I would be standing here now, speaking to a big audience like this, I would have said that there was more chance of me winning the quiditch world cup but…war makes you stronger. War makes heroes out of ordinary folk, cos you realise that even if you go under trying, you have to fight back – not just for yourself, but for your future and the future of everyone else around you. Harry says he's not a hero, but he's wrong. He is a hero, cos he never backed down, he never gave up. Everyone who fought You-you-who that day is a hero."_

" _I wasn't always very brave. I remember in 2_ _nd_ _year, we had to study the Ridikulous charm with Professor Lupin. We were told to imagine the thing that scared us most – I'm ashamed to say that mine was Professor Snape! I don't think he would have minded that part cos I think he liked being scary, however I'm not sure what he would have thought if he ever found out I pictured him dressed in my grandmother's clothes!"_ There was a burst of laughter from the crowd. Augusta Longbottom glared at him. " _Sorry gran,"_ he said sheepishly.

" _Neither Professor Lupin or Professor Snape are with us anymore. I feel sorry for Professor Snape though, cos he died thinking we all hated him and I suppose most of us did cos he was too good at being a spy. He fooled all of us, but we should have realised cos the last year before the war was awful but he never punished us properly, he sent us out with Hagrid instead."_

 _Professor Lupin had a son and if he grows up to be half the person his mum and dad were, he'll be an amazing kid. I've talked about the teachers, but there were kids who died as well and that is what is really sad – kids younger than me, who will never grow up to be what they were meant to be. They will never eat another chocolate frog and they will never have kids who go to Hogwarts themselves. Harry says they are with us and watching us and if they are, I want to say thank you…for your sacrifice, thank you for being so brave and I'm sorry that you will never get any older…"_ Neville wiped away the tear that had tracked down his face and made his way back to his seat. Others came forward to give their own tribute. Luna read a poem that she had written. It made no sense to anyone apart from herself.

After the readings, everyone assembled in the courtyard for a Weasley tribute; a magical firework display. Harry stood with his friends, his arms wrapped around Ginny, as shimmering figures of Fred, Lavender, Remus, Tonks and all the others who had fallen at the battle of Hogwarts appeared in the sky – apart from those who had followed Voldemort. Then there was a shower of exploding, golden stars that clustered together to form the Gryffindor lion, surrounded by smaller red stars. The display changed to yellow with a silver badger, to represent the colours and symbol of Hufflepuff, then blue with the golden raven of Ravenclaw, followed by a magnificent silver serpent and the green of Slytherin. Then, all four houses' symbols combined as for the grand finale, a large cluster of fireworks formed the school coat of arms bearing the motto:

 _DRACO DORMIENS NUNQUAM TITILLANDUS_

As everyone began to make their way back inside for the grand feast, Harry spotted Draco and his mother slipping out through the archway. He told Ginny he would meet her inside and rushed across the yard. When he got through the gate, they were scurrying down the steps away from the castle.

"Draco!"

They halted and turned to face him hesitantly.

"Hello Harry," said Narcissa. Her son's grey eyes met Harry's green ones and he swallowed nervously. It was the first time that Harry had seen the Malfoys since their trial.

"How have you been Draco?"

"OK," The haughty demeanour that Draco had carried all through his school years was gone. The blond boy appeared altogether more humble.

"How is your father?" Draco and his mother exchanged a look that did not go unnoticed by the other teen. "He's OK, didn't think it would be a good idea for him to – you know!"

Harry nodded, once. "Look, I don't know if you and I will ever be friends – given all that's happened, but I'd like to think that we won't be enemies."

Draco nodded and Narcissa smiled and glanced at her son, putting her arm around his shoulder.

"Aren't you staying for the feast?" Harry enquired.

The blond teen shook his head. "Nah, father is expecting us back for dinner." He took a deep breath then exhaled slowly. "Thanks – for sticking up for Slytherin. I wasn't expecting that – not from you."

"Well I was almost a Slytherin myself, I guess and anyway, no matter how you were brought up, we are talking about kids of eleven when they are sorted."

Draco nodded. "I wonder what would have happened if we'd all made different decisions." He looked unhappy, his grey eyes flicked to the ground and back.

"For what it's worth, I think you would have done well in Slytherin."

"Er thanks. I'm sorry that I did not shake your hand in the first year, when you offered it."

"Well I was an arrogant prick and I don't blame you. You were just standing up for your friend. There are a lot of stuff, I wish I had done differently," he murmured.

Harry nodded. "Me too. Not nearly getting myself killed every other week would have been a good start." Draco snorted. "And I'm sorry about the cutting curse I used on you in the bathroom. I really had no idea what it could do." Harry looked sheepish. "I thought it was just a disarming charm." He glanced at Narcissa who stood quietly, her gaze switched between the two boys, though she did not interrupt them.

Draco's eyes widened at the memory. "It was bloody painful – impressive though! Where did you learn that – it wasn't in any text book I've seen?"

"Er it was in a book that I found in the potions cupboard – it belonged to Professor Snape when he was a student, that's how I know he called himself the Half-blood Prince."

Draco snorted. "I should have known! I wondered how you came up with that name. I was surprised when I first heard about Severus and your mum. Just think…" He began. "If they hadn't fallen out – he might have been your dad instead." Narcissa's lips quirked with the ghost of a smile.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Don't even go there Draco!" Harry's brows furrowed. "It's a good think he wasn't. I'd have been grounded for most of my school life!"

"Yeah he was pretty tough on you and I guess I didn't do much to help that –sorry!" He held Harry's gaze. "If you hadn't spoken up for me and mother, we might have been in Azkaban by now. I don't think I would have survived in there."

"No they probably wouldn't have your brand of hair gel." Harry smirked.

"Oi! I'm being serious here Potter!" He glared at Harry but his lips turned up at the corner as though he was trying to hide a smile. His hand unconsciously went to smooth down his hair as he did.

Harry noticed this and mumbled. "I rest my case." Even the boy's mother laughed.

Draco lowered his hand, gazed at it for a moment then smirked. "Fair enough Potter!"

Harry glanced at his watch. "I'd better go in before Ron eats all the cake."

"Look," Draco began, "I think we have a lot to discuss, "could we meet sometime."

Harry's eyes widened in surprise. "Sure send me an owl and we'll arrange something."

He said goodbye to both Narcissa and Draco then watched as they walked to the school boundaries then spun on the spot and apparated. Harry turned in one fluid motion and headed back up to the Great Hall.


	5. Chapter 5

**Telling Lies**

Harry plonked himself down in the space between Ron and Ginny and began to fill his plate with food. "Where did you go? Ron asked between mouthfuls of chicken.

"Yeah," George said, "we were worried Ron would eat all the grub before you could get any." Ron pulled a face at his brother's asinine remark.

"Talking to Draco Malfoy," Harry replied as he spooned roast potatoes onto his plate. Ron almost spat out the chicken.

"What the bloody hell did he want?" He said

"I thought I saw Draco," said Hermione, taking a sip of pumpkin juice. She glowered at Ron.

"Yeah," Harry replied, reaching for the gravy boat. "He was on the back row with his mother. Think he was a little embarrassed to be here to be honest."

"So he bloody well should be after everything him and his father did," said Ron pursing his lips. Harry just glanced at his friend but didn't respond. Today wasn't the right day for such a discussion about how Malfoy had changed and Harry did believe that Draco had changed. His former adversary had seemed so much more humble than he ever had at school.

"If there's one thing I miss about this place it's the food," he announced, deftly changing the subject.

Ron took the bait. "Defo," he exclaimed, waving a fork that contained a half-eaten sausage. He glanced across the table. "No offense mum!"

The Weasley matriarch chuckled, "None taken my love, even I couldn't produce a feast like this."

"Let's face it, no-one could," said Harry. "The first day I was here, I remember thinking that I had never seen so much food in my life!" He stole a glance down the table and his eyes widened in surprise when he recognised the man sitting next to the headmistress as Alexander Saven, who he had met in the graveyard at Godric's Hollow almost a year ago. He caught the man's gaze who smiled and raised his glass in salute. Harry did the same, but made a mental note to try to speak to Alexander before he left. In the light, Harry could now make out a slight family resemblance – apart from the man's hair colouring.

He didn't have to wait long. Harry was just finishing his pudding – a sumptuous chocolate gateaux, when there was a light tap on his shoulder. "Hello Harry."

He snapped his head around and his green eyes alighted on the face of his former potions master's cousin. Harry returned the greeting enthusiastically.

"That was a very inspirational speech you gave, Mr Potter. I'm sure your parents would be very proud of you – as would Severus."

Harry gave an embarrassed grin. "Er…thank you I was a little nervous speaking in front of so many people but it wasn't too bad when I got into it."

"Nervous?" Alexander chuckled. "You've faced the most evil wizard of all time and were taught by my surly cousin, how could anything else possibly scare you?"

"Well when you put it like that!" Harry bit his lip. "Do you think he would mind – everything I told, I mean, I know some of it was in the Daily Prophet but… he was a very private person? I accidentally saw a memory of him being bullied by my dad and Sirius once, and he went ballistic – I thought he was going to kill me!

Alexander's eyes appeared to glaze over for a moment. He shrugged. "I don't know Harry. Perhaps if he had survived, you could both have had a better relationship."

Harry's green eyes met the man's hazel ones. "I would like to think so… but I understand why he didn't like me, I reminded him so much of the man who tormented him and then stole the women he loved." He sighed. "I'd like to think that, in that moment before he died, he saw me – Harry, not my mum or my dad."

"I'm sure he did, Harry," Alexander murmured.

Harry's gaze drifted to the table, then he heard a cough and glanced around. His friends were watching the conversation with interest. He took a moment to introduce Alexander to Ron and his family and Hermione.

Alexander nodded politely and smiled. "So you were Harry's partners in crime so to speak?"

The youngest Weasley boy gave him a toothy grin in response. "Yeah, that'd be us."

Harry shifted on the bench to make room for sandy haired man. "So how is life in the muggle world?"

"Not bad," the man informed him. "I have a small store on the South coast which I share with a very mischievous black kitten. In fact I called him Harry after you and your mis-adventures

"I'm flattered," said Harry with a smirk.

"Well he has been a good companion – I was in a strange place and didn't know anyone." He raised an eyebrow. "Although, recently I have been seeing a young lady – a muggle called Sarah."

"That's good," said Harry. "Does she know about – all this?"

Alexander sucked in his cheeks. "No-oo, but her daughter Elizabeth does, she's six years old and caught me levitating a box onto a shelf. Her mother just thinks it's a make belief game I play with her daughter. I will tell her when the time is right, but it's early days in the relationship just yet."

Harry nodded. "I guess…muggles can be – unpredictable in their response towards our world. My aunt and uncle…didn't exactly embrace the idea."

Alexander looked thoughtful. "Lily's sister by any chance?"

"Yeah, my aunt Petunia. I was brought up with them after my parents died. They hated anything to do with magic so I didn't know anything about this world until I was eleven and I received my first Hogwarts letter!"

Alexander steepled his fingers together and rested his chin on the tips. "Hmm!"

Harry glanced across the table and happened to catch the eye of Professor McGonagal who was staring at Alexander with an expression that Harry couldn't quite fathom. He nudged the sandy haired man lightly. "I think the headmistress is trying to catch your attention." As his fingers brushed against the man's coat, he felt a tingle of magic, there was a distinct shimmer – not enough to be noticeable to the untrained eye but to an auror such as himself, it was just there. A glimmer, in his peripheral vision. He frowned, his green eyes met the man's hazel ones. "You are wearing a glamour!" It wasn't a question.

Alexander breathed in deeply then exhaled. "Of course, you are an auror now. I make no apologies, I have a … disfigurement, I use a glamour charm to hide it," he said quietly. "Sorry, but I'm afraid my vanity got the better of me." He stood hastily, "I really must discuss something with the headmistress before I leave. Harry, it was very good to see you again." He shook Harry's hand and left to re-join the headmistress further down the table.

 _That was weird_ , Harry thought. He stole a glance in the direction of Mcgonagal who was now deep in conversation with Alexander, but her brows were furrowed. They both glanced over at Harry and it seemed obvious that they were discussing him. He sighed and reached for his drink, wondering.

A short while later, Harry went to sit across the table to speak with Neville and Luna. "I enjoyed your speech, Harry," Luna enthused, "I'm sure Professor Snape did too."

Harry gave a watery smile. "I'm not so sure about that Luna, I think he will be cursing me for telling everyone his secrets – especially what was written in the daily prophet."

"But everyone knows now that he was really good and I liked that story, I'm sure he does too. He was smiling." She said dreamily.

"What you can see him?"

"Of course – I'm surprised you can't Harry.

"Well…being an auror doesn't mean you can see spirits Luna."

"Oh…" The blond girl looked thoughtful for a moment, then gazed at Harry quizzically and said, "Oh he isn't one of the castle ghosts, he's just hiding. I guess you'll see him when he's ready."

Harry and Neville exchanged 'that's a Luna thing' look.


	6. Chapter 6

**Changes**

"Thanks for agreeing to meet me." Draco said as he and Harry followed the waitress to their allotted table.

"Can I get you something to drink?" she asked poising with a pen and paper.

"I'll have diet Pepsi," Draco told her.

"Er…I'll have the regular stuff," Harry said. His green eyes swept over the establishment. "The Hard Rock Café? I wouldn't have expected you to like such a muggle restaurant."

"Always fancied it, I like some of the muggle bands as well," his companion said nonchalantly."

"Really? Like who?" Harry said, picking up the menu.

"I like rock music – I mean there aren't that many wizarding bands really." The blond teen cast his eyes over the menu. "Hmm interesting choices they have here."

"I thought you hated muggles." Harry almost laughed out loud at the image that drifted into his mind of his former antagonist head banging to Metallica.

Draco wrinkled his nose. "I didn't know any better did I and anyway I don't mind the music. Know what you're having Harry?"

"Not a clue! Harry turned over the pages on the menu. He was starving, having had a light lunch of a sandwich and fruit. A sudden thought occurred to him. "Does your father know you were meeting me?"

"Father doesn't take too much of an interest in what I'm doing these days to be honest with you." Draco pulled his chair closer to the table, his grey eyes staring intently at his dining partner. "In fact…he's not really showing interest in very much unless it sits in the bottom of a whisky glass."

The pretty dark haired waitress arrived bearing a small, round tray with tall glasses full of dark fizzy drinks on it. She placed the glasses in front of them with a smile and whisked the tray away. The badge on her uniform informed them her name was Helena.

"Only so much bloody pumpkin juice and butter beer you can drink isn't there" Draco said, taking a sip of his drink and lowering his eyes back to the menu.

"Yeah," Harry replied softly. "Though I like pumpkin juice." He picked up his own glass, thoughtfully. He had noticed the absence of the older Malfoy at the Ministry of Magic, but wasn't sure exactly why the man hadn't returned to work. "Is Lucius coming back to the Ministry soon?"

Draco shot him a look. "I doubt it, I think he's had some kind of…psychotic breakdown. He hardly speaks to us. He just sits drinking and then throws the bloody glass at the wall. I think it's hard for him to realise that everything he'd been brought up to follow, to believe in – was wrong. I think he's in denial about everything."

Harry nodded slowly, his eyes darted around rapidly. "I'm sorry that he's not doing well Draco, maybe he needs to talk to somebody – a mind healer perhaps."

Draco raised his brows and snorted. "Well good luck to the person who wants to suggest that to him!"

"Was just an idea." Harry said, taking a long sip of his Pepsi. "I kind of thought that after the trial, you could all – ya know – make a fresh start."

Draco shrugged. "That's quite magnanimous of you Harry, but people don't forget – and they don't forgive that easily either. I know I was a git when I was in school but when you've been brought up to behave in a certain way, it's easy to fall into that role. I was a complete arsehole to you and it went on far too long but the way we saw it, the Dark Lord was bound to win and we wanted to be on the winning side. It was like a drug, the promise of all that power. By the time I realised I was in too deep, it was much too late. He threatened my family if I didn't do what he said. I didn't want to kill the old man. It was all a bloody mess by then!"

"Yeah," Harry breathed, "but he's gone now and your dad helped us catch some of the other death eaters."

"He's paranoid that if they ever get out of Azkaban they'll come straight for us – he's probably right as well."

"Perhaps – but they are pretty heavily guarded and they have a copy of the Marauders map so even as animagi they couldn't get past the guards now."

Draco frowned. "They have a copy of what?"

Harry explained as Draco shook his head in disbelief. "Good thing Snape never caught you with that."

"Er – he did once, but it just insulted him when he tried to read it." Harry said.

Draco sat back, folding his arms. "Pfft if he'd caught any of us Slytherins with anything like that, he would have skinned us alive and used the remains for his potions ingredients!"

"Really? I thought he didn't punish his precious snakes."

"Huh?" Draco scoffed. "He was the strictest house master in the whole school Potter. He would never have punished us in front of any other houses because of the way we were treated already but believe me if any of us crossed him, we knew about it! We were a closed unit. We never discussed Slytherin business in front of any other house! Tell me, why do you think Slytherins were very rarely caught breaking curfew?"

Harry only had a moment to ponder this revelation when a voice he had never expected to hear again interrupted their conversation, "Harry – Harry it is you isn't it!"

He glanced up at the stocky young man in front of him who was wearing an eyebrow piercing and a Limp Bizkit t-shirt. _Oh No!_ _Dudley!_

His eyes grew wide in shock as his cousin lumbered up to him. "Alright Harry, how's it goin?"

"Er…OK!" Harry was at a loss for words. It was almost two years since he had last seen his cousin as the whole family had left Private Drive for a safe house just before Harry's 17th birthday.

"Manda." Dudley yelled. A pretty dark haired girl with a vivid pink steak in her fringe, panda eyes and a lip ring wandered over and her gaze alighted on Harry. "This is my cousin Harry who used to live with us."

"Oh!" Her blue eyes grew big and questioning. She switched her gaze between Dudley and Harry. "The one who was in the army?"

Harry tried to stifle a smirk. "Er…army, yeah!" Draco blinked and his mouth fell open. He gave a quizzical glance at the large boy who had joined them, then his grey eyes shot back to meet Harry's green ones.

"I don't really like all that fighting. You must see a lot of dead people," Manda exclaimed, "I wouldn't like that, I couldn't shoot anybody!"

"Well, a lot of the time, you are just at barracks waiting for instructions." It was the first thing Harry could think of. Draco finally began to catch on.

"Well there was Dumbldedore's Army," he began.

"Is that in Ireland?"

Harry bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. "No, it's in um, France."

"Oh, OK, Anyway it's nice to meet you, I'd better go and order, c'mon D."

Dudley grinned. "Gorgeous ain't she. Well, see ya Harry." He turned to leave but then paused and shuffled his feet awkwardly. "It was good to see you and um I'm sorry for you know, everything. I know it wasn't right the way mum and dad treated you." He mumbled. "I know it wasn't right them making you sleep in that cupboard for years when I had a 2nd bedroom and not feeding you properly. I think you've done all right though. I mean – you look pretty well and all that and well I know that you had to do all that magic stuff to protect the rest of us right. Mum and dad didn't think of that. I hope there's no hard feelings." He patted Harry's arm. "Well, I'd better get back to Manda. See ya." He turned and went off to find his companion, leaving Harry speechless. He glanced at Draco who was staring after Dudley with an unreadable expression. Harry squirmed and cast his eyes to the floor, his cheeks flaming. He wanted a hole in the ground to just swallow him up.

"Is that who you lived with?" Draco asked softly.

Harry didn't meet his gaze. "Yeah. Look Dudley doesn't know what he's saying…" He turned back to the menu. "Are you ready to order yet?"

The other boy just gazed at him, ignoring Harry's attempt to deflect the subject. "You had more in common with Slytherin House than you realised!"

"What?" Harry glanced up sharply?"

"Well do you think the children of Death Eaters were all treated with kid gloves Potter?"

"I never thought about it." Harry confessed. "You weren't…?"

Draco shook his head. "Father never physically laid a hand on me…used a few smacking charms though when I was younger, probably deserved it though."

"My aunt and uncle didn't beat me…but they weren't kind. They didn't want me there, I guess they never asked for me to be left with them."

"Yeah, all the same, starving you? Locking you in a bloody cupboard, I thought muggles had laws against that kind of thing." Harry shrugged. "Did Dumbledore know? I can't imagine he would allow his golden boy to be abused."

Harry was surprised to see the depth of concern reflected in his companion's face. "Don't call me that! I had to stay with my family because of the protection from the blood wards," he said quietly.

"Doesn't sound much like protection," Draco said. "I'm surprised you weren't tempted to hex them, it must have been frustrating not being able to do magic with a family like that!"

"Well…" Harry proceeded to tell Draco about the time he accidentally made the glass disappear in the reptile house at the zoo and Dudley fell into the snake tank."

Draco gasped. "Hey if it had swallowed your cousin, it wouldn't have needed to eat again for ages."

Harry smirked. "If it had eaten Uncle Vernon, it wouldn't have needed to eat for a year."

Draco laughed out loud at this, gaining quite a few disapproving glances from the next table. It was quite a novelty for Harry to have Draco laughing with him, rather than at him.

Elena appeared with her pen and paper, poised to take their order. Harry ordered a burger with all the trimmings and Draco ordered steak. "So why did you want to meet me? Harry enquired after the waitress had left.

"I dunno, I guess – I needed to get things off my chest. I'm not proud of the way I acted at school and when I have kids, they won't be brought up the way I was."

"Well," said Harry, "Any kids of mine _**definitely**_ won't be brought up the way I was!" A stray thought entered his mind. _Kids,_ he'd never thought of that before. He wondered idly, what kids of his and Ginny's would look like. Perhaps they would have red hair and green eyes – just like his mum.

"Yeah, I don't blame you."

Later as Harry and Draco were leaving the restaurant, Dudley and Manda waved and shouted, "See ya!" They went to a muggle pub and had a couple of beers. It was a pleasant evening and they parted on good terms but made no arrangement to meet again. They had at least managed to move on from their past quarrels and he felt a sense of closure. As he hurried back home, Harry reflected on the strangeness of the day. He didn't know which was weirder – the fact that he was in a restaurant with Draco, who had confided in him about his father's drinking or the fact that Dudley apologised to him. He had no idea that by the end of the following day, even more revelations were to come to light.

He arrived back at home and had barely removed his jacket when he heard a tapping sound. He padded over to the window and lifted the catch to allow entrance to an impatient tawny owl who hooted at him furiously, before dropping a small packet in his cupped palms.

He fed the owl a titbit and examined the package to see who it was from. There was no identification on the outside of the envelope so after casting his wand to check for dark spells and hexes – and finding none, he tore at the wrapping. It contained a small vial with a shimmery, silver-blue substance in it and a note that said, "Something I took from you – I respectfully request that you never disclose the contents to anyone. There was also a muggle CD with the words 'listen to track 6' written on a piece of paper tucked inside the front cover. There was no name and address on the packet but Harry knew who it was from – _Alexander._


	7. Chapter 7

**Hang on to yourself**

 _(Warning for bad language)_

Harry placed the CD into the player and pressed the play button. The device had been charmed so that it didn't require any muggle form of power such as electricity. He selected track 6 which was titled 'Quicksand' just as he had been instructed. He sat down in in a big, squashy armchair and felt his shoulders sag as he relaxed, listening to David Bowie's mesmerising baritone voice. Harry couldn't quite make out all the lyrics so he conjured a piece of parchment, pressed repeat and watched with a mixture of curiosity and satisfaction as words to the song appeared as soon as they had been sang.

 _I'm torn between the light and dark_

 _Where others see their targets_

 _Divine symmetry_

 _Should I kiss the viper's fang_

 _Or herald loud_

 _the death of Man_

 _I'm sinking in the quicksand_

 _of my thought_

 _And I ain't got the power anymore_

 _[CHORUS]_

 _Don't believe in yourself_

 _Don't deceive with belief_

 _Knowledge comes_

 _with death's release_

He sat staring at the words on the parchment

 _Should I kiss the viper's fang._ The exact details of his former professor's method of execution had never been released. Had McGonagal told Alexander? _Knowledge comes with death's release._ A crazy idea was forming in his mind. Knowledge was given to him with death's release – the memories, Snape gave him before he died. What was it Luna had said?

" _He isn't one of the castle ghosts, he's just hiding. I guess you'll see him when he's ready."_

Harry's eyebrows shot up as far as they could go. Alexander Saven had been wearing a glamour. He cast his mind back to the night, he had met the man in the graveyard. He had discovered he had the invisibility cloak, even though he couldn't remember taking it with him.

His mind was racing – it couldn't be _! Snape?_

Harry slipped into the empty chamber in the Ministry of Magic and cast a locking charm on the door. He walked over to the recess where the pensieve sat on a marble plinth and with trembling hands reached into his pocket and took out the packet he had received the day before. He removed the small glass flask containing the magical substance and poured it into the basin.

He took a deep breath and plunged his head into the etheric liquid. As his head hit the surface he felt himself falling into the memory. He landed on damp grass but his feet made no sound. He saw his 17 year old self from almost a year ago, in a grey hooded top, standing by the graveside of his parents and Professor Snape, at midnight, in Godric's Hollow.

He watched wide eyed with fascination, as the dead former Hogwarts headmaster threw off Harry's invisibility cloak and handed it to him. "Well that was a touching eulogy Mr Potter."

"Thank you Sir," The other Harry said. "I'm glad you approved."

Snape snorted. "It's not every day, one gets to attend one's own funeral."

It was Harry's turn to snort. "It's not every day one gets to meet their dead potions teacher either." He added as an afterthought, "Sir."

Severus's eyes darted around. "Touché, Mr Potter!"

"Is your magical core fully healed now then?"

Snape nodded. "It is, thank you for the loan of your cloak – as loath as I was to touch something that once belonged to your father, it was…useful."

Harry ignored the jibe. "Have you been here much? To visit my mum, I mean?"

Severus shook his head. "Not really, it was…difficult!"

Harry nodded in understanding. "I saw them, you know – when I went to meet Voldemort." His gaze drifted back to the grave when the other man didn't answer. They stood side by side, gazing intently at the white marble stone as though they expected the ghosts of Lily and James to rise up before them. For a few minutes, neither of them uttered a word until Harry broke the silence. "What will you do now Sir?"

Severus' dark eyes broke contact with the gravestone and he glanced at the younger man. "'I have always fancied travelling. I believe that Italy is nice this time of year."

"Italy? Not Romania then?" Harry said with a smirk, turning to look up at his former professor.

The older man tutted and rolled his eyes in response. "Cheeky brat! I assure you Mr Potter that the rumours of my being one of the undead are quite exaggerated. Present circumstances excepted, of course. " His voice, however, didn't hold any of his usual antagonism.

"Of course," Harry murmured. "Although, I do think you would make a good vampire."

Snape folded his arms across his chest and did his best to look menacing. "Do you now!" He cast an eye over his dark clothing. "I don't suppose it matters anymore."

Harry sighed. "It's a shame that you have to go into hiding since your recovery, but all the world thinks you are dead. I will do my best to clear your name though – and make sure that everyone knows the truth."

"I really don't care one way or the other," Snape informed him. "Severus Snape died on the day of the battle and it's probably better for all concerned if he stays that way."

"OK," Harry stared at the black granite gravestone. "Will I ever see you again?"

"I don't think so," his former teacher replied. "After all it would be quite a shock if your dead potions professor suddenly turned up one day."

"Yes but, I know the…" Harry's voice trailed off as he stared at the wand, Snape now held up. "Oh come on, you don't have to do this."

"Yes I do," the older man told him softly.

"But, I don't want to remember you the way I saw you after Nagini's attack." Harry pleaded.

"Please Mr Potter, he sighed. "Harry," It was the first time that Snape had ever called him by his first name. "Don't make this any more difficult than it already is."

"What are you going to obliviate Hagrid and MrGonagal too?" Harry was shouting now.

"I have already dealt with the gamekeeper. Minerva is the only one who shall remain aware of the truth."

"But I feel like I only just got to know the real you – and you saved my life so many times. I want to get to know you." His voice trailed off and he stifled a sob. "You are the last link to my mother. No-one ever talks about her."

Severus grasped his temples in frustration. "Really Mr Potter! What did you think? That we could be friends? That we could sit drinking firewhiskey together and discuss your mother? I _can-not_ do this!" he hissed. "Apart from the fact that I would be a target for the death eaters for my betrayal. I believed I _was dying_ when I gave you those memories and I did not expect that damned phoenix to turn up. I must do this I have no choice. Nor do I wish to remain in this life!"

Harry turned away. He couldn't look at the man anymore. "Because I remind you of everything you lost." He felt deflated. "Because if you had stayed together with my mum, then I might not have been born. You hate me because, you wished I never existed."

"Oh Merlin's bloody great…once again, your extraordinary powers of deduction amaze me Mr Potter. No not because I wish you had never existed but because, Harry, every time I see you, I am reminded that if your mother and I had got together you could have been …"

"What?" Harry' head snapped back towards his ex-teacher.

"Look at your parent's gravestone, Harry. In the bottom right hand corner," he said softly.

The present day Harry watched in awe as his one year younger self crouched down in front of Lily and James Potter's grave. "I don't see anything. What am I looking f…"

" _Obliviate!"_ The word was spoken at barely above a whisper.

The older man then waved his wand in a series of complicated patterns and his appearance changed. The hair changed to sandy brown, the dramatic black cloak changed into a muggle trench coat and the facial features altered; the cheekbones becoming higher, eyes slightly larger and a lighter colour. Harry watched as his 17 year old self rose from his crouching position, his fingers tracing the outline of the etched writing.

The man that Harry knew as Alexander Saven, took one last look at the grieving 17 year old and turned to leave – until he heard a sob behind him and spun round in one fluid motion.

There was nothing more to be seen. The memory ended and Harry found himself once more standing in the underground chamber, wide eyed with shock.

He sat down on the nearest chair, his nostrils flared as white hot anger coursed through his veins. _I thought you were dead, you bastard, I grieved for you and you are living a happy contented life down South with your new girlfriend._ Then as quickly as his anger rose, it dissipated, waring with logic and reason. Alexander had given Snape the happiness that he had never found in his old life. He had a right to that happiness. Snape/Alexander could have just left and Harry would have never known. He hadn't though, he had stayed behind to offer comfort to the grieving 17 year old Harry. He blinked, his mind reeling at the memory. Had Snape really been about to say that Harry could have been his son had things turned out differently? Once upon a time, the very idea would have made him want to heave but now, he had much greater respect for the man who had worked so hard to ensure his safety and aided him in bringing about the end of Voldemort. Snape had hated him on sight from the moment he had first set foot in the Great Hall because he reminded him of James Potter. Alexander had attended the memorial a few days ago. Had he gone there with the express purpose of seeing Harry?

He slowly regained his equilibrium and with a sigh, padded over to the pensieve where he carefully extracted the memory and placed it back into the tiny bottle. He would keep the man's secret. It was the least he could do. He hated having to keep things from his friends but it wasn't a complete lie – the man who had been Severus Snape was dead to all extents and purposes. He could live the rest of his life in the muggle world, as Alexander Saven, with his girlfriend and her daughter – oh and not forgetting Harry the cat. However tempting it would be to look the man up and pay him a visit, he hadn't left a forwarding address so it was obvious he did not intend Harry to do this. He wondered if it had been difficult for Alexander to return to the wizarding world that one day – reminded of everything he used to be. No wonder he had left Harry's side when the auror had realised he was wearing a glamour. Professor McGonagal was obviously the secret keeper. Harry felt a little disappointed that Severus hadn't chosen him for that role, but then given the history between the two of them, it was hardly surprising.

That evening, back at home as Harry played the rest of the CD, he felt a sense of peace settle over him. He was happy for Severus/Alexander. In a way, Severus Snape had died in battle of Hogwarts. A thought occurred to him – Saven. He picked up his wand and wrote the word in the air – SAVEN. He cast a charm and the letters rearranged themselves to form another, more familiar name; EVANS – of course, his mother's maiden name!

 _Clever_ , he mused and he closed his eyes and sat back in the armchair to relax, whilst listening to the velvet tones of his former teacher's favourite artist.

He picked up the jewel cover of the CD and marvelled at the name – which seemed fitting somehow:

'Hunky Dory'

18 years later…

Between platforms 9 and 10 of Kings Cross Station in London, an exited family stood in front of the barrier and making sure that no muggles were watching, they walked straight forward, passing through the charmed gateway that only allowed wizards and witches access to platform 9 and 3 quarters. Not that any muggle in their right mind would attempt to pass through a seemingly solid brick wall. They joined the gaggle of exited schoolchildren, all waving goodbye to their anxious families. Harry spotted the Malfoys who were saying goodbye to their son; Scorpius. Draco nodded at Harry in acknowledgement. The Hogwarts Express was waiting, its gleaming red and black livery, was a stark contrast against the grey stone of Kings Cross station.

James Sirius Potter kissed his parents goodbye and jumped enthusiastically onto the train to join his peers. It was his 2nd year at Hogwarts and the confident 12 year old had already established his place at the school and made many friends.

Harry's youngest hesitated. "But dad, what if I'm in Slytherin?"

Harry crouched down till he was eye level with the boy. "Albus Severus Potter," he began in earnest, "You were named after two Hogwarts headmasters and one of these was the bravest man I ever met."

"But what if I am...?"

"Then Slytherin House will have an excellent young wizard. But if it really bothers you, the sorting hat will take your choice into consideration."

"You could be put in Ravenclaw like Auntie Luna or Uncle Alex," the youngest child; Lily Luna, who was still holding Ginny's hand, piped up."

Harry gazed with affection at his daughter. "Well, yes you could," Harry agreed. He knew of course, that 'Uncle Alex', had really been in Slytherin, but he kept that secret. Only two other people, apart from Professor McGonagal knew the truth and that was Harry and Ginny – his soul mate. He wondered whether Alex and Sarah's youngest daughter Amelia, would be attending Hogwarts – she was now ten years old. Elizabeth, had been a little envious when her two year old sister had shown magical tendencies but Alexander had explained that with the ability to do magic, came great responsibility and that it didn't mean that Amy was better than Lizzie – or that he loved her any less. Lizzie was now twenty four and in her final year at university. She couldn't be prouder of her special magical family, even though she knew the importance of keeping this secret from other muggles. She did not, however like the name 'muggle'.

Albus seemed placated by this and jumped on the train with the swarm of other children. Harry and Ginny waved to him through the window.

"He'll be alright."

The guard blew his whistle and the train began to chug out of the platform. Harry took once last look at the eager faces pressed against the window as they began to disappear from view.

His scar hadn't bothered him for years, everything was hunky dory.

 **Finite**


End file.
